My take on the Browns so far.

[Neo]

After game two, I think it is a pleasure to have two competent quarterbacks that can play plus a developmental guy like McCoy that doesn't have to be rushed into action. Even though they started out sloppy, I think the got their shit together and played fairly well the rest of the way. It sure is night and day looking at Jake/Seneca stat's compared to DA/Quinn stat's. You have to feel pretty optimistic about our quarterback situation right now.

Look's like it's getting crowded at the RB position with the outing Peyton Hillis had tonight, Hardesty injury is really hurting him right now. Did anyone else's heart skip a beat when Davis got up slow? I was thinking "Not again!" Evan Moore continues to impress me with his pass catching ability and Watson sure made one hell of a play to make a one-handed TD grab. Cribbs is looking better at WR and Stuckey looks like he is going to be our starting slot guy. I think Steptoe is gone and I kinda feel bad for him because I think he got a raw deal with that injury lastyear.

I think our defense looks ALOT better than past versions have. Our tackling have vastly improved but we are still not generating enough of a pass rush. Haden still looks like he has room to improve. Ward has been solid so far. We are loaded at linebacker which used to be a weakness is now a strengh. Eric Wright's tackling looks like it has vastly improved as well.

I think it is going to be a very exciting year this and I can't wait for the regular season!! GOOOO BROWNS!!!!

[Pedros Gaff]

Hillis is a BEAST

[Legendary]

Can't give feedback as I haven't seen or read a game report yet. I have been asleep for 9 hours

We made lot of progress and we will be a lot stronger and slightly weaker in some area.

[Tobalaz]

Sorry, I'm just too damn disgusted.
What was it 6 fumbles and a pick for 5 turnovers?
5 of those fumbles by starters?
We're supposed to be built for the elements yet a DOME TEAM played the rain better than us!
Even though they're going to go back to their jobs as school teachers, auto mechanics and pimps, there was no excuse for all those penalties at the end of the game.
Oh, there were a few bright spots like the Vickers/ Hillis backfield and Cribbs actually looking like a real receiver but the negatives far outweighed the positives.
Steptoe just got himself cut.
Davis had one nice run at rb the rest looked horrid. Hell, Jennings looked better than that last season.



Sorry, just that was sloppy football that made us look like a bunch of clowns across the US.
At least Ward looked great again today.

[Neo]

Originally Posted by Tobalaz

Sorry, I'm just too damn disgusted.
What was it 6 fumbles and a pick for 5 turnovers?
5 of those fumbles by starters?
We're supposed to be built for the elements yet a DOME TEAM played the rain better than us!
Even though they're going to go back to their jobs as school teachers, auto mechanics and pimps, there was no excuse for all those penalties at the end of the game.
Oh, there were a few bright spots like the Vickers/ Hillis backfield and Cribbs actually looking like a real receiver but the negatives far outweighed the positives.
Steptoe just got himself cut.
Davis had one nice run at rb the rest looked horrid. Hell, Jennings looked better than that last season.



Sorry, just that was sloppy football that made us look like a bunch of clowns across the US.
At least Ward looked great again today.

Thanks Tobalaz. At least someone was nice enough to give me feedback on my post

[Tobalaz]

Sorry, I had to wait to cool off or my post would have burned out a sailor's eyes and got me at minimum a month off.
Like I said, the loss isn't what I'm upset about. God knows I'm 34 and dealt with enough of those from my Browns over the years.
*strike up the Police Academy music*
(with my best commandant Lassard voice....) It boils down to failure at a fundamentals level, and that's really, really bad and makes for a really, really long season.

[Jax Dawg]

Originally Posted by Joker

Thanks Tobalaz. At least someone was nice enough to give me feedback on my post

Sorry Joker, alot of us won't see the 2nd preseason game until Monday afternoon at 4:00 PM on NFL Network. I wouldn't want to comment on much of anything until I see at least two games.

Also I noticed unusually low number of members last night on Barking Hard, seems that most that saw the game last night were commenting in the chat box.

[Alo]

I've got some thoughts on Freckles McCoy & Vicky Veikune, but I'll start with the boring stuff:

Our Good O-line Could Be Bad

Late last week, we discussed how Holmgren & Hecket opted not to re-sign Hadnot. Initially, I supported the non-move, but the 2nd pre-season game made me reconsider.

First of all, Billy Yates sucks. Pressed into starting duty because of Womack's injury and Lauvao's absence, the mediocre reserve was flagged for a false start, gave up a sack, and whiffed on a couple blocks. He may get consideration for the 53 man as a versatile reserve, but he's not the kind of guy you want on the field for an entire game.

Secondly, Steinbach's showing signs of age. The 6'6" offensive guard now plays even more upright and stiff, which makes it difficult for him to lock onto second level defenders, as well as hold up against bull rushers. Last week, Packers rookie Mike Neal walked him all the way back to the quarterback; journeyman Gary Gibson had the honor of doing so this week.

Steinbach still can play at a relatively high level, but he's not the player he once was. And if he suffers another back or rib injury, his play could deteriorate to the point that he'll need to be taken off the field. If that happens, we may be forced to play someone like Yates, which would leave us all missing that fatass Hadnot.

Our New "Nickel" Look

Many of us here have expressed concerns about the speed & cover ability of our starting safety duo; as of late, replacing Abe Elam with the speedy Mike Adams has been a very popular opinion. It looks like Mangini & Ryan have the same concern, but they're toying with a different solution.

For much of last night's game, the defense lined up in a 4-2-5 defense. Of the four defensive lineman, two lined up in a three-point stance (Schafering inside & Gocong outside), while the other two played with their hands up (Benard out, Roth in).

But the real interesting stuff happened behind the d-linemen. Instead of having two linebackers and five defensive backs, the the Browns used their best coverage LB (Fujita) and six defensive backs: Wright, Brown, Haden, Elam, Ward, and McDonald. On some plays, Ward would come up and play at linebacker depth alongside Fujita, and McDonald would be back at safety. On others, the opposite would happen.

So it's possible that McDonald, not Adams, will be the one who adds a little more speed to the back of the secondary. But the coaching staff will retain the flexibility to flip him & Ward based on situations & coverage assignments.

To conclude with a cliché, it very well could provide the team with the best of both worlds.

[Inspecta]

Joker, dude.....calm down fella. You're being a little overly sensitive on this one. Like others have said, they haven't even watched the game yet. Most of us don't live in Ohio, so we don't see the games till they reshow them on NFLN. So it's hard to comment on something you haven't seen.

Also this game was played about 12 hours ago, those that did see it prob went to bed afterwards and haven't even logged on to comment.

Be patient dude.....

[BernietheKid]

Browns bogged down by the rain, lose to the Rams 19-17
Published: Saturday, August 21, 2010, 11:34 PM Updated: Sunday, August 22, 2010, 7:43 AM

Tony Grossi, The Plain Dealer

UPDATED: 12:09 a.m.

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Hold off on the Super Bowl reservations. And don't go taunting the Steelers, Ravens or Bengals until further notice.

The Browns aren't quite there yet.

They relapsed after a sterling preseason debut and lost to the St. Louis Rams, 19-17, in a steady rain Saturday night.

As usual in a practice game, the final score didn't matter as much as what transpired when the regulars played. In the case of the Browns, it was not a performance to inspire unfettered optimism.

They fell behind, 13-0, in the first half while fumbling five times, losing two. They also dropped two interceptions, committed a false start and allowed a 23-yard punt return.

The Browns eventually took a 17-13 lead but gave up two field goals and were intercepted twice in the fourth quarter to lose a game for the first time since Dec. 6. They also lost another fumble for a total of five turnovers. The Browns had 285 yards of total offense.

Eric Mangini hoped to see his team play better than its near-flawless performance in the preseason debut in Green Bay. That may have been unrealistic, but the coach did not expect to witness such a sloppy outing against a team that won one game last season.

"We can't put the ball on the ground," Mangini said. "It starts there. We haven't had much rain through camp. That's no excuse. They had to deal with it just like we had to deal with it.

"We're gonna turn the sprinklers on [at practice] or dunk the balls in water. It shouldn't be like that."

While the Browns treated the ball like a piece of wet penne pasta, the Rams' first-team offense marched 65 yards in 10 plays on its first series. St. Louis did it with quarterback A.J. Feeley completing passes to men named Billy Bajema (a tight end), Mike Karney (a fullback) and Daniel Fells (another tight end).

Fells scored the touchdown when he put a move on cornerback Brandon McDonald inside the 5-yard line and snatched Feeley's pass. Feeley completed the drive despite playing most of it with a sprained right thumb, courtesy of a Chris Gocong hit on a blitz.

Rookie quarterback Sam Bradford, the No. 1 draft pick, helped tack on two field goals in the first quarter. Each came after short drives set up on fumbles -- by Jake Delhomme on a snap and Josh Cribbs on a punt return.

Those were the only fumbles technically lost by the Browns. Delhomme fumbled the first snap, picked it up and handed the ball to Jerome Harrison, who fumbled it after a 4-yard gain but was ruled down. The next play, Harrison fumbled again and Cribbs recovered.

The Browns also committed a false start on their first drive, and cornerback Eric Wright mishandled two sure interceptions. They also allowed a 23-yard punt return by Rams rookie Mardy Gilyard.

These miscues certainly tainted the first half, when both teams played their starters.

But Delhomme salvaged something in a 77-yard touchdown drive in the second quarter. Delhomme regained control of his game in time to allay concerns that his outing in Green Bay was a fluke.

Peyton Hillis was the sparkplug. The bruising runner gave the sparse crowd something to cheer about with a 9-yard run on which he bounced off would-be tacklers six times.
Hillis had equal determination on a third-down catch, drawing the Browns close enough to gamble on fourth-and-3 from the Rams' 19.

Delhomme converted the first down on a pass to Josh Cribbs and connected with Benjamin Watson two plays later in the end zone. Watson made an acrobatic, juggling catch with his left hand while managing to drag his second foot on the ground at the end line. The play was ruled no catch and overturned on replay.

"He made a fantastic catch," Delhomme said. "Passes down the field were somewhat limited tonight, but he made a great catch."

Delhomme missed a scoring chance on the next series when he overthrew Brian Robiskie open on a corner route to the end zone. The drive ended on an unfortunate fourth-and-3 call -- Hillis up the middle from the Rams' 17. Hillis was mauled after a 1-yard gain.

Phil Dawson's 38-yard field goal later in the half closed the Rams' lead to 13-10.

Delhomme played the entire half and finished with respectable numbers -- 12-of-16 for 127 yards, one touchdown and a passer rating of 118.5.

That wasn't bad considering the Browns rushed for only 33 yards, committed two turnovers and were missing No. 1 receiver Mohamed Massaquoi (hamstring).
Delhomme was upset with the two mishandled snaps.

"I'm ticked off," he said. "We're gonna do a lot of work together, me and Alex [Mack, the center]. It bothers me."

Seneca Wallace opened the second half and immediately put a touchdown on the board on an 11-play, 78-yard drive. Wallace made two good throws on the series, connecting with tight end Robert Royal on a perfect pass in the middle of the field for 25 yards and then with Cribbs for a 15-yard touchdown. Cribbs separated from cornerback Quincy Butler in the left corner of the end zone and made a nice grab.

But any thoughts of Wallace, an eight-year veteran, dominating the St. Louis backups was quelled when he was intercepted on his only other series.

Rookie Colt McCoy had another rough outing. He didn't complete either of his two passes and was sacked twice in two series.

Brett Ratliff had a chance to duplicate his late-game game management skills in Green Bay and move the Browns into position for a game-winning field goal attempt after the two-minute warning. But after one first down conversion and one huge dropped pass by rookie Carlton Mitchell, Ratliff was intercepted throwing for tight end Alex Smith.

Browns bogged down by the rain, lose to the Rams 19-17 | cleveland.com

[BernietheKid]

Rams Rally for 19-17 Win
		By Fred Greetham OBR Browns Reporter Posted Aug 21, 2010 | More Browns turnovers doomed the team's 2010 home debut.
Cleveland—The Browns spotted the Rams a 13 point lead before posting 17-straight points to take a 17-13 lead before the Rams rallied for two fourth quarter field goals to gain a 19-17 victory over the Browns in front of announced crowd of 58,250 in the rain at Cleveland Browns Stadium. With the loss, the Browns are now 1-1 in the preseason. Josh Brown kicked four field goals for the Rams in the win, including the game-winner from 28 yards out with 3:29 to play in the game. The Rams scored nine points off of Browns’ fumbles. The Browns committed five turnovers, three fumbles and two interceptions in the loss. The Rams had none. "I don't think we ever gave up out there," running back Peyton Hillis said. "A loss is a loss and a win is a win no matter how you stir it up. We had five turnovers and it resulted in our loss. We need to correct that and build on it for next week." Eric Mangini wasn’t happy with the way the Browns started, as they turned the ball over three times that lead to Rams scores. “I thought what we didn’t do well was we didn’t start fast we didn’t protect the football,” Eric Mangini said at the half. “We had self-inflicted wounds in the first quarter and we didn’t get out defensively. All that being said, what I liked that we did was we hung in there, we didn’t panic. The defense got two stops on the sudden change and then we were able to come back and put the game in the position that we are in right now.” The Rams jumped out to a 7-0 lead with 7:48 to play in the first quarter as A.J. Feeley hit Daniel Fells for a 10-yard touchdown. After the Browns started the game with a three-and-out, the Rams took the punt and marched 65 yards on 10 plays for a touchdown taking 5:01 off the clock. The Rams started the drive with a 16 yard pass from Feeley to Billy Bajema to the Browns’ 49. An 11-yard run by Steven Jackson and another 10-yard pass to Bajema were the keys in the drive. After the touchdown, the Browns ran one play before Jake Delhomme and Alex Mack mishandled the snap and Fred Robbins recovered on the Browns’ 23. The Rams extended their lead to 10-0 as Josh Brown kicked a 32-yard field goal after the fumble with 5:01 to play in the first quarter. Sam Bradford entered for Feeley and his first pass was almost intercepted as Eric Wright stepped in front of the receiver, but couldn’t hang on. On third down, Wright was called for pass interference to give the Rams a first down at the 15. Bradford tried to hit Laurent Robinson, but Sheldon Brown went up and batted down the pass in the end zone and Brown kicked the field goal. The Rams punted with less than two minutes to play in the first quarter and Cribbs was stripped of the ball and the Rams’ Chris Massey recovered at the Browns’ 21. Three plays later Brown hit a 39-yard field goal to make it 13-0 with 1:35 left in the first quarter. The Browns cut the lead to 13-7 as Delhomme and Watson hooked up on a six-yard touchdown pass with 9:54 left in the first half. The Browns finally got the offense going at the end of the first quarter. Trailing 13-0, Delhomme hit Watson for nine yards and then he hit Chansi Stuckey for 28 on the last play of the first quarter. Peyton Hillis had a nine-yard run to the 27. After a loss, the Browns were faced with fourth-and-3 from the 19 and Eric Mangini elected to go for the first down rather than kicking the field goal. Delhomme hit Cribbs on a short pass that he broke a tackle and picked up the first down to the 10. On second down Watson made a nice one-handed catch in the back of the end zone that was ruled incomplete. Mangini challenged and the call was overturned and the Browns had a touchdown to make it 13-7. "He made a fantastic catch," Delhomme said. "To say that was where I wanted to throw the ball, I'd be lying to you. I looked at the coverage before the play and thought Ben was going to be the one open. Passes downfield are somewhat limited tonight, but he made a great play." After forcing the Rams to punt after three plays, the Browns first team offense came out again and moved the ball to the 17 before turning it over on downs to the Rams as Mangini elected to go for the first down on fourth-and-3 and Hillis ran up the middle for just one yard. Delhomme hit Jerome Harrison on a short pass and he broke it for 32 yards to the Rams’ 24. The Browns cut the Rams lead to 13-10 with 1:05 to play in the first half as Phil Dawson kicked a 38-yard field goal. After the Browns forced the Rams to quickly punt once again, Syndric Steptoe returned the punt to the Rams’ 41. An 18-yard pass to Stuckey took the ball to the 22. After two-straight tipped passes Dawson kicked the field goal. The Browns went 21 yards in six plays for the score. Seneca Wallace started the second half and led the Browns down field for a touchdown to give the Browns a 17-13 lead with 9:08 to play in the third quarter. Wallace threw a nice pass over two Ram defenders and Cribbs hauled it in as he was going out of the end zone for a 15-yard score. Wallace hit Robert Royal for 25 yards to the Rams’ 40 and Hillis ran the ball five-straight plays until the touchdown pass. With 13:06 to play in the game, Brown hit a 21-yard field goal to make it 17-16. The score was set up by a fumble on a punt when Syndric Steptoe fumbled the ball and the Rams recovered on the Browns’ 39. Keith Null hit Michael Hoomanawanui for 25 yards to the nine over Mike Adams to set up the score. The Rams took the lead with 3:29 as Brown kicked his fourth field goal from 28 yards to make it 19-17. Null hit Dominique Curry for 13 yards to the Browns’ 25 on third down and then Joe Haden was called for pass interference on the next third down to give the Rams a first down on the 15. The Rams went 56 yards on 15 plays taking 7:25 off the clock. The Browns had last chance as they took over with 1:48 to play at their own 24 with Brett Ratliff at quarterback. However, after a completion, Ratliff threw an interception to former Ohio State linebacker Bobby Carpenter. "You don't want to sound this way, but you're glad it happened," Delhomme said. "It's probably good we had something like this. We're disappointed the way we started and we were sleepwalking for whatever reason at the beginning. We did make some plays in the second quarter to get back in it." Notebook QB Play: QB Jake Delhomme overcame a slow start and finished the first half 12-of-16 for 127 yards and one touchdown. Many of his passes were short and the receivers were able to break loose after the catch. RB Jerome Harrison had a 32-yard reception on a swing pass and WR Chansi Stuckey had a 29- and 18-yard receptions. Delhomme was sacked once by DL Fred Robbins. His QB rating was 118.5. Delhomme finished with a QB rating of over 100 for the second-straight week. QB Seneca Wallace started the second half with the rest of the starting offense and led the Browns on a 78-yard touchdown drive capped with a 15-yard pass to WR Josh Cribbs. On his next possession, Wallace had the offense moving, but it ended with an interception by DB Quincy Butler as he tried to hit WR Carlton Mitchell on a deep pass. A few players earlier, Wallace scrambled for 16 yards and a first down to the Rams’ 48 on third-and-15. Wallace was 5-of-9 for 67 yards with a touchdown and an interception. QB Colt McCoy came in the fourth quarter and was three-and-out, including two sacks on his first possession. He finished 0-of-2. QB Brett Ratliff came in the final two minutes and was intercepted to end the game with 1:16 to play as Bobby Carpenter made the play. He was 1-of-4 for 10 yards and an interception. Slippery Fingers: The game was played in rain and the Browns had trouble hanging on to it. RB Jerome Harrison lost the ball on his first two carries. The first was whistled down and the second WR Josh Cribbs recovered it. QB Jake Delhomme fumbled a snap exchange and Cribbs fumbled a punt return. In the third quarter, PR Syndric Steptoe fumbled a punt return and the Rams recovered at the Browns’ 39. The Browns also had two interceptions. Meanwhile, the Rams had no turnovers. Sam vs. Joe: The game featured the No. 1 and No. 7 picks in this year’s NFL Draft in QB Sam Bradford and CB Joe Haden. Haden picked up a bouncing kickoff and returned the ball 28 yards to the 40. Haden also knocked down a pass intended for WR Donnie Avery on third down from the Browns’ 21 in the first quarter. Bradford relieved an injured QB A. J. Feeley and was 6-of-14 for 24 yards. Feeley injured his right thumb on the first series on a hit by LB Chris Gocong. Stuck on Chansi: WR Chansi Stuckey had three receptions for 51 yards. TE Ben Watson had three catches for 22 yards and a six-yard touchdown. WR Josh Cribbs led the Browns with five receptions for 30 yards, including a 15-yard touchdown. Injured: DL Robaire Smith went down early in the third quarter, but walked off on his own power. DL Kwaku Danso injured his finger and did not return. Rushers: Harrison had five rushes for 13 yards and one reception for 32 yards. RB Peyton Hillis had 12 rushes for 51 yards and two receptions for 12 yards. Tacklers: LB Chris Gocong led the Browns with five tackles, while DB Eric Wright had five, as well. LB Scott Fujita had four and DB T.J. Ward had three. Offense: The Browns had 285 yards in total offense with 187 passing and 98 rushing. No Go on Third: The Browns were 0-of-5 on third down in the first half. Eric the Gambler: Eric Mangini went for it twice on fourth down in the red zone, converting one of two. Inactives: For the Browns: WR Mohamed Massaquoi, DB Coye Francies, RB Montario Hardesty, LB D’Qwell Jackson, OL Joel Reinders, OL Shawn Lauvao, DL C. J. Mosley, OL Floyd Womack, OL Tony Pashos, DL Shaun Rogers and LB David Bowens. Billy Yates started at right guard for Lauvao and Joshua Cribbs started for Massaquoi. Scout.com: Rams Rally for 19-17 Win

[Flugel]

Originally Posted by Joker

After game two, I think it is a pleasure to have two competent quarterbacks that can play plus a developmental guy like McCoy that doesn't have to be rushed into action. Even though they started out sloppy, I think the got their shit together and played fairly well the rest of the way. It sure is night and day looking at Jake/Seneca stat's compared to DA/Quinn stat's. You have to feel pretty optimistic about our quarterback situation right now.

Look's like it's getting crowded at the RB position with the outing Peyton Hillis had tonight, Hardesty injury is really hurting him right now. Did anyone else's heart skip a beat when Davis got up slow? I was thinking "Not again!" Evan Moore continues to impress me with his pass catching ability and Watson sure made one hell of a play to make a one-handed TD grab. Cribbs is looking better at WR and Stuckey looks like he is going to be our starting slot guy. I think Steptoe is gone and I kinda feel bad for him because I think he got a raw deal with that injury lastyear.

I think our defense looks ALOT better than past versions have. Our tackling have vastly improved but we are still not generating enough of a pass rush. Haden still looks like he has room to improve. Ward has been solid so far. We are loaded at linebacker which used to be a weakness is now a strengh. Eric Wright's tackling looks like it has vastly improved as well.

I think it is going to be a very exciting year this and I can't wait for the regular season!! GOOOO BROWNS!!!!

Nice post Joker. Yeah, it seemed like the camera lens got stuck on Davis in that pile where he looked very uncomfortable. Luckily, it wasn't an injury and he bounced right up.

Man, I REALLY underestimated Hillis' value when he came here. Dude was runnign through LBers like they were in a pin ball machine. BTW, Vickers was freight training people all night in the lead blocker role. LOVED it.

I STILL can't see where Gocong was anythign but where the football was all night. The 1 concern that hasn't gone away is how HIGH he keeps tackling people. In a game predicated on leverage - he's GOTTA get those shoulder pads lower on ballcarriers. He was the guy who put Touchy Feeley out of the game. He's got a REAL nose for the ball IMO.

Our dline was pretty freakin good all night.

My favorite rookie at this time is TJ "Hospital" Ward. He just brings the killerhurts man!

Judging by the stats, TE and QB seems to be the most improved area of the team. That does NOT suck in any way, shape or form. And Cribbs seems like he's improving as a WR even though I've been told it'll never happen. He's never been fond of the word "cannot" or he wouldn't be here flourishign in open fields. Remember when Savage told us we didn't have a replacement for Northuctt in the return game when Cribbs was here hearing he shouldn't even try to compete with the likes of Northcutt as a return guy? Yaaa, when he say "cannot" - I'll take it a little more serious.

Biggest disappointment yesterday? Ummm, hold onto the FREAKIN football guys. And I don't feel like saying FREAKIN if you know what I mean. If we didn't have 5 turnovers (4 in the first quarter) - we clobber that team.

Last but not least, could you tell which rookie QB on the field was worth a 50 million $ signing bonus yesterday? Me neither. Should the Rams CUT Bradford because he wasn't good? No, just like the Jets didn't need to CUT Sanchez when he threw 5 INTs in 1 game with a 9-7 caliber talent load around him. ROOKIE QBs learn the hard way so fans like Dallas has badgers a Jimmy Johnson to start a Steve Walsh over a Troy Aikman PRE-hindsight. It is what it is. I just wish we protected McCoy better than flashbacks to Suh. That last oline out there was terrible as a unit.
- Tom F.